It's not often we see future Hall-of-Fame head coach John Calipari humbled due to a lopsided loss. That's exactly what happened on Saturday, as No. 1 Tennessee welcomed in Calipari and No. 23 Arkansas for what was supposed to be a close SEC battle.
That wasn't the case at all, however, as Tennessee was able to post a truly dominant 72-56 victory. The Vols had no issues coming out on top and even Calipari couldn't believe how great Rick Barnes' players looked. Right after the final whistle, Calipari had no choice but to give UT credit for owning Arkansas in this one:
Arkansas coach John Calipari: I've had better days. Tennessee is the No. 1 team in the country for a reason. I'm not disappointed we came here and lost. I've never had a team manhandled like that. How did we lose by just 25. That could have been 50.
— Wes Rucker (@wesrucker247) January 4, 2025
John Calipari gave Tennessee major props after the Vols took Arkansas to school
"I've had better days," Calipari said via 247's Wes Rucker. "Tennessee is the No. 1 team in the country for a reason. I'm not disappointed we came here and lost. I've never had a team manhandled like that. How did we lose by just 25. That could have been 50."
Those words from Calipari tells everyone that even he couldn't believe how incredible Tennessee looked. It indeed was a day to remember for the Vols, with Chaz Lanier leading the way. Lanier, the best transfer in the country, scored a game-high 29 points, drilling five 3-pointers.
He wasn't the only Vols stud to put on a show, as igor Miličić Jr., also a transfer, scored 13 points and added a career-high 18 rebounds. The Vols dominated play around the glass, with Arkansas having no answers in slowing them down there.
With the victory, Tennessee is now a perfect 14-0 on the season, which is something not a lot of people expected from this squad before the new campaign got underway. Next up is a huge showdown with No. 6 Florida. Will the Vols improve to 15-0? It's going to take a strong effort to make that happen, but the win over Arkansas should surely give the locker room plenty of confidence.